


Sehnsucht

by HiddenObscurial



Series: Grindeldore One Shots [5]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, M/M, One-Shot, Set during HP era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2020-01-11 09:34:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18427850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenObscurial/pseuds/HiddenObscurial
Summary: Sehnsucht: a wistful longing for the person or thing your heart most desires.





	Sehnsucht

Gellert sat on his cot in the corner of his cell. A rusty iron chain around his ankle held him to the wall. The runes had long faded off, but by then, after almost fifty years of imprisonment, his body had already wasted away, and he had lost his strength to carry out wandless magic.

He was’t quite sure how many years it had been since he had last seen anyone - ten, maybe fifteen? Food and drink were pushed through a slit in the door every day, but it was always a house-elf who served him, never a wizard or witch. Sometimes, they left him a copy of the Daily Prophet, at first as if to serve as a reminder of how his cause had failed, and later on just out of pity, for he had nothing to do other than waste away in this stone cell. 

Albus used to come by a few times a year, strengthening the charms around the cell and the castle to prevent his escape. He’d sit outside the door of his cell, and he would talk to him; tell him about all the things going on in the outside world. But it had been years - more than a decade - since he had last seen Albus. He knew Albus did not quite love him as much any more. 

He heard footsteps approaching his cell from the outside, and slowly got on his feet. His entire body, weak from his years of inactivity, protested against him, his joints aching and his legs barely taking his weight. 

The slit in the door slid open, a slice of bread on a plate and a cup of water was pushed inside, along with a copy of the Daily Prophet. Then, with a screech, the slit closed again. 

Gellert walked over and picked up the newspaper.

 _10 Dead in Anti-Muggle Attacks; Ministry Calls for Calm_ , read the headline. 

He scanned through the article, looking for any mention of Albus. There was none. 

Sighing, he put the paper down, then sat down on the ground and started eating. The bread tasted as bland as usual. As he ate, his thoughts drifted to what was going on the outside world. 

During the First Wizarding War, Albus had come by often, telling him about all the happenings of the war. A wizard named Voldemort had apparently modelled his campaign after Gellert’s own cause, and gathered a following before showing his true colours as a dark lord. Albus told him of the death and destruction the war had brought - the deaths of all those who fought for the light alongside him. 

It had made him think of his own revolution, the one that had landed him in this cell in the first place. Looking on as another wizard tried to go down the same path as him, he could only feel the bitter taste of regret and guilt. He had brought the same, if not more, suffering upon the people that had opposed him. The deaths, and the cries of pain that came with them, that had meant so little to him then, now they reminded him exactly why he was sitting in this cell. It had taken him years to come to terms with it, but he had finally accepted that he deserved this when Voldemort came into power. 

And now, with the war against Voldemort starting up again, what was Albus doing? He knew from the old reports that a boy named Harry Potter was the one to defeat him the first time. Albus would use the boy again for sure; that much, he knew. But beyond that, he could not imagine what Albus would do to prepare the boy.

Just as he was about to return to his cot to rest, he heard footsteps approaching his cell once more. That was unusual. 

He stood as the slit in the door was pushed aside. Through the slit, he could see a man with long, silver hair, wearing a pair of half-moon spectacles. And behind those spectacles, he saw a pair of clear blue eyes he had never thought he’d ever see again. 

_It couldn’t be..._

Gellert stepped closer to the door, squinting in the light. 

“Albus?” he whispered, not daring to believe that the man standing before him was real. 

“Gellert... I’m so sorry,” Albus said softly. “I should have come sooner.” 

“You don’t have anything to apologise for,” Gellert replied, not taking his eyes off his friend. “It’s my fault that I’m in here anyway. If I hadn’t done those terrible things, we could have been together.” 

Albus dropped his gaze to the ground. “No, Gellert. It’s just... I’m afraid we don’t have much time left.” 

“The war?” Gellert guessed. “Voldemort’s getting stronger?” 

Albus sighed, nodding grimly. “I’m afraid so.” 

“How are you going to defeat him?” Gellert asked. 

“I’ve been training this boy - Harry Potter. Harry will defeat Voldemort; I know it. You see, as you probably already know, Voldemort created multiple Horcruxes; he split his soul into pieces to avoid death. But when he tried to kill Harry all those years ago, he unknowingly created a final Horcrux in Harry himself. He will not be able to kill Harry without first destroying his final Horcrux.” 

Gellert frowned, considering the options his friend could take. “So you’ve kept him alive to die at the right moment?” 

“Yes,” Albus replied quietly. “Harry must die only after all the other Horcruxes are destroyed.” 

“And have you found any of the Horcruxes?” 

“Yes. We’ve destroyed two of them.”

“And the rest?” Gellert asked. 

Albus sighed. “I think I know what they are, but I will not have enough time to help Harry destroy them. You see, Gellert... I made a grave mistake.”

Slowly, Albus raised his right hand up to the slit. His fingers were blackened and shrivelled. Gellert knew instantly that it was a curse that had done that to his hand. 

“Where exactly did you get that from? A curse of that much power... I’ve never seen anything like it,” Gellert said. 

“I found the Hallows, Gellert.” Albus laughed quietly, but his voice was hollow, devoid of any humour. “After all these years... I finally found them.”

Gellert watched him silently, not believing his ears. 

“The Elder Wand, of course, I took from you. The Cloak was passed down, through the generations of witches and wizards descended from Ignotus Peverell. I happened to befriend one of his descendents, James Potter, and he lent it to me, a few days before he died. I returned it to Harry when he came to Hogwarts; he’s the rightful owner of it, after all.”

“And the Stone?” Gellert asked. 

“It was embedded in a ring; turned into a cursed Horcrux by Voldemort himself,” Albus said. “I was a fool, Gellert. When I found that ring... I was tempted. I just thought for a second that I could see my parents or Ariana again.”

Albus sighed before continuing. “I put the ring on, hoping that just maybe I could use its powers for a short while before destroying it. It was stupid of me; the curse took effect instantly. One of my fellow professors managed to help me contain it to my hand, but it will not last long. I’ve got about a year left, at most.” 

Gellert stepped up to the door, the sound of iron against stone echoing through the cell as his shackles were dragged across the floor. He reached his hand through the slit and took Albus’ other hand in his. 

“Is there really no counter-curse?” he asked quietly. 

Albus shook his head. “I came to say goodbye to you, Gellert. I’ve already planned out my death. If I am to die, then my death must be made use of. I have a double agent amongst Voldemort’s death eaters, and he will be the one to kill me. He’ll gain Voldemort’s trust and hopefully lead Harry to the rest of the Horcruxes.”

“Albus, you can’t just-“

“I have to,” Albus cut him off. “It’s the only way Voldemort can be defeated. And I can’t let an innocent boy do the job instead.”

They stood in silence for a minute, before Albus spoke again. 

“When I’m dead, Voldemort will come looking for the Elder Wand. I need you to help me stop him.” Albus clutched his hand through the door just a little tighter. “Please.” 

“I will,” Gellert replied without any hesitation. The guilt of knowing that Voldemort had modelled his uprising after his own atrocities still ate away at him, and perhaps, this was a final chance for him to make amends, no matter how insignificant. 

Albus watched him, unshed tears glistening in his eyes. 

From down the hallway, he heard footsteps, and then, a house-elf’s voice. “Professor Dumbledore, sir, your Portkey is leaving in five minutes; you should be on your way soon.” 

Albus turned away for a second to nod and acknowledge them, before turning back to face Gellert. They stood there, holding each other’s hand through the door, struggling to find the words to say goodbye. 

“I’m sorry, Albus,” Gellert finally said. “For everything I’ve done.” 

Albus nodded slightly, a bittersweet smile just barely tugging at the corners of his lips. 

“Goodbye, Gellert.” 

And then, he untwined their fingers and slipped his hand out of Gellert’s grasp, before moving to close the slit in the door.

It was when the slit had almost been closed that Gellert realised he had forgotten to say something. 

“Albus, wait,” he called. 

Albus met his eyes again, looking at him through the cell door. 

“I love you, Albus.” 

Albus took a deep, shuddering breath, a single tear escaping from the corner of his eye and slipping down his cheek. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, before looking up at Gellert again. 

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Hope y’all enjoyed it :)
> 
> Send me prompts on my [tumblr](https://hiddenobscurial.tumblr.com)!


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